Commissioner Resurreccion Borra said though that the signature of Commissioner Rufino Javier, who was absent during yesterday’s hearing on the case, is a mere formality and the decision will be promulgated with or without it.
"We already got the majority signature. The last signature is just a formality," Borra said, claiming that Javier told him he would concur with the decision. Aside from Borra, Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano also signed the resolution.
Borra, however, refused to give the media a copy of the 11-page resolution.
"We, in the Commission, firmly submit that the action taken by the petitioner is procedurally flawed, not to mention that it is likewise not sanctioned by existing laws and rules and prevailing jurisprudence," he said, reading the resolution.
The TRO was issued pending the disqualification case filed by incumbent Isabela Governor Faustino Dy Jr. against Padaca, who he accused of terrorizing voters in the May 10 elections with the help of the New People’s Army (NPA). Dy, who lost to Padaca by some 40,000 votes, said that if Padaca takes office, Isabela would fall into the hands of the communist rebels.
In yesterday’s hearing, Dy’s lawyer Pete Quadra, tried to present evidence linking Padaca to communist guerrillas but Borra said the hearing is not the correct forum for it.
Dy’s legal counsel Constante Foronda said they are going to elevate the issue to the Supreme Court as the Comelec denied them the right to present evidence.
Padaca, a polio victim, thanked the Comelec commissioners for lifting the restraining order. "Thank you very much Commissioners Borra and Garcillano," she said as he urged Dy and his supporters to accept defeat and respect the will of the Isabelanons.
"I hope that in time, they’ll learn to accept this. They should not take it as an insult that a Grace Padaca had defeated them. The people of Isabela just want change," Padaca said in a telephone interview.
She admits though that the governorship of Isabela would not be a bed of roses for her if the Dys would continue to oppose her leadership. "This proclamation is actually the easiest part. Taking over a government where the Dys and their supporters are entrenched is the hardest part," she noted.
But Padaca is not about to give up. "As long as the Isabelanons are with me, I can do everything for them," she added. — With Lito Salatan and Sheila Crisostomo